Shells
by Spunky Lily
Summary: The adventures and mishaps of Ryan and Marissa's daughter, Chloe, a feisty six-year-old with a very big imagination. First in the 'Make My Day' series. FluffyKidficFuturefic
1. Little Lost Buffy

Disclaimer: Last night I got a phone call; I own _The O.C._! Okay, it was only a dream so… no… I don't own anything, 'cept Chloe.

Author's note: Hey! It's my first _The O.C. _fic, and (surprise, surprise) it's a kidfic o'course. It's fluffy, it's cute, and please, that sexy review button is calling you. You know you want to, so review!

"Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family. Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one."  
~Anne Howard (1935-1996)

The sunlight dipped slowly beneath the horizon, creating a setting that looked so beautiful it was almost surreal. Waves lapped gently at the beach, the foam stealing a rather pretty, light peach colored shell from a pair of small, grasping hands.

"Come back!" Chloe Atwood-Cooper commanded of the shell irritably, wading into the water as she pulled her pants up just enough so that the ocean's waves wouldn't get her already sand-covered and generally dirty—as uncle Seth called them—knickers any more tattered. "HEY! I told you—" she grasped the shell for a moment, then… "Damn!" Chloe shrieked. She supposed it was 'the grown-up thing to say', as Daddy was always saying that… but Mommy would always look at him like she had eaten spinach. And spinach was yuck-ee.

Discouraged, six-year-old Chloe walked back to shore, a frown on her face as she planted herself in the sand, folding her arms.

"Didn't get it back, Clo?" her godfather, Seth asked, sitting next to her on the oceanfront.

"Nu-uh." She replied, her ponytails flying as her head shook.

"We can always find another one," he suggested reasonably to the girl, but the look in her bright blue eyes was completely devoid of a 'yes'.

"But—" Chloe protested, beginning to sob. "Buffy was my best friend." Seth just sighed. Ever since the girl was two, she'd always go collecting seashells along the beach, and since the Atwood family did not have a dog, (much to Chloe's dismay) she kept various inanimate objects, rocks, shells, and once even a condom, as pets. And Buffy was her very first. "I wanna go home…" she finished reluctantly, not wanting to abandon Buffy, wherever she may have been.

"Me too. Your Mom's gonna flip when she finds out I had you out here past six o'clock." Chloe liked Seth. He treated her like a grown-up, which was more than she could say for most people.

She followed Seth to the pickup truck, completely abandoning her sandals on her purpose to go barefoot. She liked being barefoot almost as much as her pets… and Mommy, and Daddy, and uncle Seth, and aunt Summer and everybody. Almost.

Seth smiled at the little girl buckling her seat belt. Chloe was a byproduct of Ryan and Marissa's early recklessness, but nevertheless a blessing in their lives.

Several minutes later, Chloe arrived home to her mommy's warm hug, "You're late, baby," Mommy observed. "And… _Chloe_ how do get so dirty so fast."

"I'm a lot closer to the ground than you are." Chloe mused, staring right into her mother's eyes, the unusually bright blue eyes mirroring her own. Mommy laughed and tousled Chloe's short, ash blonde tresses a bit.

"You." Mommy said accusingly to Seth. "Explain."

"Marissa, she lost Buffy, so we were looking for her. No success whatsoever." He replied. Marissa? Was that Mommy's nickname? Chloe had heard her mommy be called by that name often, and everybody called Daddy Ryan. It was all very confusing.

Mommy reached a degree of understanding and nodded. "Thanks a buttload, though, Seth. I owe you."

Chloe headed inside, were a peanut butter and pickle sandwich was waiting. She'd been to her friend Kari's house before, and they always ate together and prayed, which boggled Chloe's mind. Her family only prayed when aunt Summer was cooking.

As she bit into the, quote, "oddest sandwich ever", unquote, she thought about her family for a moment. Joey, that one boy in her small Kindergarten class, had said that your family had to be your brothers and sisters and mommy and daddy. Technically, Chloe didn't have any brothers or sisters… yet… but she did have a mommy and daddy. But her family wasn't just them. No, it was everybody. Everybody she knew who cared about 'Marissa' and 'Ryan' and, of course Chloe.

And, as far as Chloe Dawn Atwood-Cooper was concerned, _that _was her family.


	2. Oh No You Didn't

"great story have marissa and ryan have another kid"

I'm getting on that :)

"ITS GOOD BUT WHY AREN'T U CONTINUNG? ALSO HE NAME SHOULD BE CHLOE DAWN COOPER ATWOOD NOT CHLOE DAWN ATWOOD COOPER BECAUSE THAT MEANS THAT RYAN AND MARSISA CHANGED THEIR LST NAMES- WHATEVER JUST CONTINUE PLEASE!"

*Shrugs* Well… hmm… I'll have to look into that…

~*~*~

"Okay, Chloe… pick one."

Still clung to her father's hand, Chloe ran down the aisle, quickly surveying the movies available to rent. She halted in front of one particular title, grinning and picking it up. "This one." She decided, poking the lettering.

_Dirty Harry. _Not a bad choice… but unfortunately, the last time they rented the title, Ryan had gotten into big trouble, or as his daughter would call it, deep doodoo.

Ryan sighed. "No, honey."

Uh oh. The tears were coming. "But _Da-ad_." Chloe protested.

"No." he replied, his voice devoid of any confidence. But he couldn't fight 'the face'. It was one of Chloe's most powerful weapons. It even worked on Marissa, which was really surprising. "_No_…" he repeated, though this time just to assure himself. Suddenly a smile sprouted. He was an absolute genius. "Tell you what. If we don't get this movie, you can go down to Seth's." he finished, knowing of his daughter's long time crush on her godfather/uncle.

Chloe returned a goofy little smirk. "Okay!" she agreed loudly.

~*~*~

"Clo Bear," Summer began, the little girl acknowledging the voice with a turning head. "Promise me you'll just stay here, on the couch… and not set anything on fire. Or go on an 'adventure'." She commanded, remembering that one time when Chloe had backed her parents' car into the garage door.

"Adventure?" Chloe retorted hastily. "I didn't even get on the highway."

"You know what I mean. Now, here's an two hours of Disney goodness," she held up the videotape, entitled _The Parent Trap_. Chloe squealed, jumping off of the couch and grabbing the tape from Summer's hand, shoving it in the VCR.

"Remember what I said…"

"'Course," Chloe replied, already wholly absorbed in the commercials and previews.

_Good. Distraction is good. _Summer thought, approaching Seth's bedroom.

~*~*~

"Summer! Seth! The movie's over!" Chloe announced, trying to get their attention without moving from her spot. "You _guys_!" she yelled, finally getting off of the sofa and staring down the VCR, trying to understand how to get the tape out. She peered through the little 'flap' and shoved her tiny little hand in there, trying to thrust the video out. "Arrrgg!" she growled in frustration, sighing a very adult sigh. Well, now she'd have to go get them herself.

Chloe set off to the first room down the hallway—the bathroom. She cracked open the door, gazing in it with one eye. Nope, no one there. Next, the kitchen. Unsurprisingly, it was completely empty. The bedroom was the closest nearby, so she set off to that room. The door creaked open with a long wine, light peeking in through the room's complete darkness. A large mass of limbs shifted in the claret colored sheets, the sound of smacking lips could be heard clearly from the doorway.

"Seth? Summer?" Chloe called.

The mass moved again, more swiftly this time, and separated. "Chloe? Oh my God! Out!" Seth yelled, completely embarrassed.

~*~*~

"Why don't you have any kids?" Chloe asked bluntly to Seth the day after 'the incident'.

"Aren't you close enough?" he retorted, shifting nervously in his seat in the dining room of Ryan and Marissa's home.

"Nu-uh."

"Why are you asking?"

"'Cause I'm just curious, that's all…"

"Oh, really," Seth said, not hiding the skepticism in his voice.

"Well, I figure that if _you_ have a kid, then the kid could be like my little brother… or sister…"

"Why don't you just ask your mom or dad?"

"'Cause I think they don't want any more." She stated, and there was a long, contemplative silence.

Ryan and Marissa entered, smiling as they took the seats opposite. They shared a brief kiss, and Seth shielded Chloe's eyes with a single hand, commenting. "Hey, there's kids in here!"

"Didn't seem to bother you, condom man." Ryan smirked.


	3. The Phone Call

Dedication: To all of my lovely reviewers :) I love you all. What? I'm serious!

~*~*~

Near Newport Beach, California

Lincoln Stern made his best attempt at keeping still like his mom told him to do. Okay, maybe not his _best_ attempt, but at least he was trying. He wiggled around in his seat belt in the back of his mother's car; putting his hand against the window, frost etching its corners. It was a chilly day, especially considering it was May, and the cold never really suited the seven-year-old. His curious, multifaceted, hazel eyes stared out into the heavily forested, rolling hills of Californian countryside. It was nine o'clock in the morning, and fatigue nearly drowned his rarely pessimistic expression. His hair was dark and messy, and no matter how much you combed it, brushed it, or even gelled it, it would stay the same, and unruly, and he liked it.

"Mom?" Lincoln, or rather Lin as he preferred, asked, his gaze shifting to the front seat, where his blonde mother was perched.

"Yeah, honey?" her own line of vision remained on the road.

"Where 'r' we goin'?"

There was a long pause. "Home."

~*~*~

"_Mom-ee_," Chloe whined. "I don't wanna go to school!" she stamped her foot against the ground defiantly.

Marissa sighed and re-tied the ribbons on her already messy pigtails. "I know, sweetie, I know…" Chloe had been saying this for almost an entire school year now, since she'd started in way back in September. She was very clever and intelligent, and she most certainly flaunted _that_, but the school therapists were calling her 'very anti-social'. And since her only and best friend had moved away, it only worsened Chloe's little 'situation' as that damn therapist called it.

"Do I have to go?" she added.

"Look on the bright side," her mother told her. "Only a few more days until summer vacation."

"Summer's going on vacation?"

~*~*~

"Well, I've got stooperpowers!" Marc Ward gloated to an amused crowd of young children, pleased.

"It's superpowers," Chloe corrected, mumbling.

"D'you say something, kid?" he asked her threateningly, waving his fist.

"You said you have _superpowers_, not stooperpowers." She said, standing up to face him. He was a little intimidated; Chloe already stood taller than all of the boys and girls in her class. "Wanna prove it?" she, too, now held a single fist up.

~*~*~

Nurse Joyce Schwartz had never in her ten years of practice seen anything like it. The little boy was covered in bruises, scratches, cuts, and not to mention a bloody nose, while his opponent, a tall girl his age, left the duel unscathed.

"An Atwood in a fight?" Marissa said just before entering the nurse's office, pretending to be shocked. "Never."

"It was bound to happen sometime, I guess. And you won't believe who she got in that fight wit—"

"You must be Chloe's parents, come in, please." Joyce smiled one façade of a smile seating them in rather uncomfortable seat next to her next. For a moment, the only sound was the annoying buzz of florescent lights hanging in the ceiling, then she said:

"I recall we discussed this before with the school counselor. Your daughter needs to be more open with people." She tilted her glasses to the tip of her nose. "Or she might get into more spontaneous little scuffles like these."

"Miss Schwartz," Ryan forced a smile. He'd barely met her before, but now he didn't like her even more so than the last time. "Our daughter is open with people she trusts, and she doesn't trust a heck of a lot of people."

"Well, she needs to have mutual trust, Chloe must give a reason for people to trust her, Ryan."

He cringed. Okay, going into the informal is not a good thing, lady.

~*~*~

Seth entered his home, an immediate sense of restlessness and tension hitting him like a sledgehammer against a watermelon. Worse still, his wife was seated at the dining room table, and she wasn't doing _anything_. Just twiddling her thumbs. _Okay, who is she and what did she do with Summer?_ Thought Seth.

"Um… Seth…"

Another not-so-good thing. He knew he was in trouble she went straight to the formal and called him 'Seth' instead of playfully using his surname or some other title.

"Summer, something's wrong… w—what's going on?"

"I—I…" began she, "I—I'm pregnant…"

Before Seth could react, the phone gave a shrill ring. "I—I'll get it…" he said, running toward the receiver and picking the phone up.

"Cohen's'."

And for what seemed like a very long time, he listened, uttered a few, 'Oh my God's and hung up. This couldn't be happening.

"What is it?" Summer asked quietly.

"It—its Anna. She's gone, Summer."


	4. I'm Sorry

**Author's Note: -**receives glare from reviewers-

I know, I know. I've taken my time on this chapter. And you know what? Writer's block is a bitch, and that stupid plague has consumed me thoroughly. I've also realized that this is the fic getting the most attention, so I thought a chapter up, and I hope you like it.

You better. :)

Oh, and the whole chapter either consisting of Seth's POV or just an omniscient POV

* * *

Oh, God. This isn't happening. It can't be.

My truck pulls up to the scene of the accident, and it's more horrible than my brain can register. The paramedics are tending to another person on the blacktop, a little boy; a little bit over Chloe's age. His twisted little body crumpled on the highway, eyes closed and staring at nothing, with his tears still wet on his face. Damnit, he must have been so scared. An EMT lifts his head, and I see the blood rush onto the EMT's gloved hand.

The car.

The car's overturned and crushed, only the back seat of the car isn't completely crumbled. It's been slammed against another vehicle, a truck nearly twice its size. It only has a large, car-shaped dent in the front.

"There's a pulse!" the EMT announced, sounding relived as the other paramedics gathered around, lifting the boy's pale and broken body out onto the stretcher.

I follow the ambulance to the hospital, Summer in the passenger's side. We were both dead silent throughout the entire drive, an uncomfortable ringing of no sound plaguing the air around us.

We both rush inside, and I ask the nurse at the front desk if Anna Stern was hospitalized here. She nods solemnly, "_Was_," she repeated my wording, and I understand. But yet I don't. I don't want to understand. She was Anna; funny, smart Anna… I was completely unwilling to accept that she was really, really dead.

"And the boy? Who is he? Is he gonna be alright?" I snap, but sounding more worried than anything.

The woman turned away, eyeing a stack of papers and fingering them gently. "Lincoln Stern," she read distantly. "Her son. Fractured skull, with a rather big concussion. Our doctors are working on it, and he'll probably be alright."

I turned away wordlessly, barely satisfied by the info. That's when I see them.

Marissa and Ryan rise up simultaneously, giving Summer and I a comfortable four-way hug. Chloe's here, too, but she's still sitting in the chair in the waiting room nearby. As we all reluctantly pull away, Chloe gets up, runs to me, and squeezes my waist. "It's gonna be okay uncle Seth, I promise," she vowed to my abdomen. Then she clung to Summer.

Summer smiles weakly, but retains her girl-next-door-who-just-happens-to-look-like-a-supermodel look, "It'll be alright, Mini Cooper." She stroked Chloe's tresses, freed from any sort of hair tie.

"I—I'm so sorry, Seth," Marissa tells me, putting her hand on my shoulder. I don't want sympathy, but I feel it anyway, and the pain dulls just a little.

* * *

Chloe had never seen uncle Seth so sad in her entire six years on this Earth. She felt like she had been split into tiny pieces, like a pizza, every time she looked at him. Mommy told her that Seth had lost a very good friend, and that he felt really bad. Sometimes she wished she could say something that would make him feel better, but Chloe thought—and knew—that she really wasn't a grown-up, as much as she'd like to be, and nothing she said would matter.

But it did.

She went to her first funeral she'd ever been to a week and a half after the accident, and it was scary. Chloe begged her parents to sit in the back; she'd never want to be so close to someone who was dead. There was a little boy who sat with two really old people in the front, and she knew that he didn't want to be there.

After the funeral, there were some cookies and tea upstairs in the church, and Chloe drew in a deep breath and went over to the boy.

"What's your name?" she asked curiously.

"Lincoln. But everybody calls me Lin, 'cause I don't really like Lincoln all that much. What's yours?" the dark-haired Lin returned a question.

"Chloe, but my aunty calls me Clo Bear or Mini Cooper, and my mommy and daddy and uncle call me Clo. But you can call me Chloe if you want." She said all of this very, very fast.

"Uh… Chloe's alright. It's a pretty name," Lin complemented.

"Thanks," a slight blush painted her cheeks. "So, why are you here?"

"My mommy got killed in the accident. I got a big bump on my head," he answered, pointing to a shaved section of hair in the back were staples held a large cut together.

"I'm sorry," Chloe replied quickly, knowing that that was being said a lot. "She's my parents' and my aunt and uncle's good friend."

"Oh," was all he could say, his hazel eyes looking downcast.

"Uh… um… bye, I guess." Chloe said, wandering away. She had a funny feeling in her stomach; one she'd gotten once before, when she was talking to Seth. It was weird…

* * *

**Author's Note:** Sorry the chapter's so short!

And I know there's a lack of lots emotion on Lin's part, but I'll explain why later…

**Next Chapter:** Jumps six years into the future, where Chloe and Lincoln reunite after a long, long time; six years.


End file.
